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Is this a good setup for my needs?

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Is this a good setup for my needs?

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
Is this a good setup for my needs?
Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-10-20 09:22:51
Tags: #VLAN/IPTV #Access Point Mode #Backhaul Method
Model: Deco M4  
Hardware Version:
Firmware Version:

I am trying to figure out if this is a good setup for my needs. I feel it is all a bit complicated. I have a couple of devices in a few different rooms. One room has an internet port from the ISP, a router, a switch, two NAS devices, and a home alarm system. One room has an IPTV box from the ISP and the last room has my computer. I need good coverage for WiFi all over.

 

Here is my suggestion for ethernet wired connections:

 

  • Internet
    • Router from ISP
      • Switch
        • NAS device 1
        • NAS device 2
        • Home Alarm System
        • Deco M4 in AP-mode
          • IPTV box
        • Deco M4 in AP-mode
          • Computer

 

My questions are:

 

  1. Will all devices on the network be able to talk to each other on the same LAN?
  2. Will I get gigabit wired connections for the IPTV-box and my computer?
  3. Will IPTV work?
  4. Do I have to turn off the WiFi on the main router and connect to a new SSID from the Deco system?

 

Thank you for your time!

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#1
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6 Reply
Re:Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-10-20 23:32:10

  @TASan,

Any devices that are connected under the umbrella of the main router will be able to communicate with each other, as all of this processing is done on the main router, not APs or switches. APs simply forward their connections to the main router. For the most part, your setup will operate as planned the one exception being the Deco M4 that is connected to IPTV.

 

According to our docs, the AP mode on Deco disables the IPTV functionality, but this might just prevent the deco from MANAGING the IPTV connections. I do not know if this prevents IPTV connections if the main router supports it. 

 

As long as your ethernet switch has gigabit ports and your router has gigabit functionality, you should receive full speeds through the ethernet backhauls.

 

 

If you want to use the Deco as the main router, as it also has IPTV functionality in this mode, yes you would need to put the router into bridge mode and disable the wireless connectivity. This essentially makes the router turn into a modem. You would then have to move one of your deco units between the ISP Bridged Router, and the Network Switch.

 

I would recommend going ahead with your setup as it is stable and correct, unless you want to remove the wireless network from the ISP router to utilize the mesh functionality of the Decos.

Check out the Latest: Getting Started with EasyMesh and TP-Link New Tablet Mode for the Tapo App Comparing the Latest Tapo Doorbells
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#2
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Re:Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-10-21 06:22:39

  @Riley_S Thank you for answering.

 

I see that this customer had IPTV-problems: https://community.tp-link.com/en/home/forum/topic/166814 

 

Now, what happens if I do Modem -> Deco M4 in router mode -> Switch -> Deco M4 -> Cable to IPTV? What mode should the last Deco M4 be in? I can do the mesh-setup, but I need to know that the cable to IPTV does not have to go directly from the router M4 into the IPTV box without passing another Deco M4 for it to work.

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#3
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Re:Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-10-21 16:42:29

  @TASan,

Unfortunately, a lot of information we have on IPTV is conflicting due to how many ways there are to set it up and how many types of IPTV there are.

The Last M4 would just be set up as normal through the deco app as a mesh node.

 

For the main question, no, if your network is running the IPTV server on the main router, your IPTV connection should be available anywhere on your network. I even found documentation that mentions that the IPTV should work when the Decos are placed in access point mode.

 

As a warning though, there are additional configuration steps that have to be taken in order to properly set up the IPTV function on your network. Details can be found here: How to Configure IPTV on Deco

Check out the Latest: Getting Started with EasyMesh and TP-Link New Tablet Mode for the Tapo App Comparing the Latest Tapo Doorbells
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#4
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Re:Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-10-21 16:59:27

  @Riley_S 

 

Ok! Thank you very much, I'll just have to try 😊

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#5
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Re:Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-11-02 13:18:40
I have now set up two Deco M4 as access points. I kept the WiFi of my main router on, then I added the same network name for the first Deco. I got it to work eventually. I activated IPTV function and chose bridge as the mode. It works. Now the second Deco just autoconfigured as an access point. I did not get to choose anything about the IPTV function for this second Deco. Does this mean that it is active? Where can I change it? The second Deco will be connected to a computer using the second port. It should not have IPTV enabled.
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#6
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Re:Is this a good setup for my needs?
2022-11-12 08:04:16

@Riley_S 

 

I have to take that back. I got problems with IPTV after a while. Also, the settings for IPTV just disappears when you put the Deco M4 in access point mode.

 

I can't see that access point mode is compatible with IPTV if all settings just disappears?

 

The setup of the Deco in access point mode is also a bit tricky. You first have to set it up in router mode with another SSID than your main network. Then you need to change to access point mode. Then you need to change the SSID to be the same as the main network.

 

While you are doing this the phone is constantly connecting to your main network router, so while restarting the Deco, the app never understands that the Deco is restarted. You'll have to forget your main network and kill the app to continue.

 

It would be much better to choose what mode you want to set up before the setup starts. This way you can set up the correct SSID from the get go. If you do this in router mode, you get a message that you can't set up an SSID that already exists.

 

I suggest you do a real world scenario test of setting up access mode Deco M4s. I think only very technical people will be able to figure it out.

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#7
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VLAN/IPTV Access Point Mode Backhaul Method
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